Mobile devices such as smart phones, personal digital assistants, tablet computers, and other types of mobile computing devices are becoming increasingly popular. Mobile devices are used in both personal and professional settings for a variety of purposes. Users may desire that their mobile devices be suitable for both personal and professional use. To this end, business might allow users to access business resources from their personal mobile devices but only if such businesses can secure sensitive information accessed at the mobile device. Various approaches have been attempted to secure personal mobile devices and mobile applications for use in a business setting. There remains, however, room for improvement.
Mobile device operating systems may impose limitations on the ability of mobile applications to communicate and collaborate at a mobile device. Inter-process communication (IPC) is one mechanism with which mobile applications might communicate at a mobile device. Some mobile device operating systems, however, may visually “flip” between mobile applications when communicating via IPC to the annoyance of the end user. In addition mobile device operating systems might function to put mobile applications into a “sleep” state if unused after a preset period of time which might impede communications between mobile applications. Therefore new approaches to application management are needed that overcome these and other limitations.